KNOWN television personality and a career educationist in her own right, Naveed Shahzad abhors the very idea of naming one’s favourites in any field of art. Her tone goes quite unequivocal when she says that there is “no such thing as an all-time favourite”.
But when she starts talking about movies, her eyes light up with a strange kind of passion. “I was a small child when I saw my first movie. The medium enchanted me in no time. So be it Gone with the Wind, Ben-Hur, Mother India or the relatively recent Gladiator, I enjoy watching them all, as each one of these movies caters to a different mood,” she says.
Devdas, the older version, is also one of the movies that mesmerizes her even today. When you mention its recent version, she comes hard on it, calling it “a bad, glamorized remake” of the original. “The old Devdas was more true to the culture of Bengal, and, as such, has a timeless appeal. The new one was a pathetic attempt, and the acting of Jackie Shroff was sheer buffoonery,” says Naveed Shahzad rather ruefully.
Talking of foreign films at length does not mean that Naveed has no stomach for the local offerings. There are several that feature on the list of movies that are dear to her. “I strongly believe that the black-and-white era was the golden period of our films. In those days, commercialism was something unheard of, and the filmmakers were imbued with an undying zeal to produce quality movies. Film-making was a passion with them. Movies like Neend, Koyal and Heer Ranjha testify to the glory of that age. It is quite sad that we have miserably failed to keep such traditions alive,” she bemoans.
Like any other connoisseur of art, Naveed also feels bad about having been a witness to the downfall of our film industry. The fault, according to her, lies with the abundance of unprofessional storywriters who are bent upon writing purposeless stories full of ghastly blood-spilling, and lewdness. “We are in a dire need of fresh writers as well as fresh faces to bolster our film industry which is virtually in tatters. Film actors must also be trained so that they may deliver better performances on a sustained basis. We have got some superb actors like Shaan, but the problem is that we are not using them intelligently,” she says.
In the realm of music, too, Naveed Shahzad has an ear for all kinds and genres, from the classical to the pop, as she is equally entertained by them all, depending, of course, on her mood at any given time. But what she strongly advocates is that singers must get proper training in classical music before entering into the pop arena.
“I started listening to music on radio. Fortunately for our generation, Lahore was the hub of classical music at that time. Roshan Ara Begum, Amanat Ali Khan and Malika Pukhraj were ruling the roost. So it was a real treat for us to listen to all these maestros,” she says recalling the good old days.
Similarly, Mehdi Hasan and Noor Jehan, in her view, have no equals for their fabulous voice. Among the pop singers, she is all praise for Ali Zafar whom she predicts to be a real star in the making. “It is my mood that decides what type of music I should listen to. It may choose Sehgal, Abrarul Haq or Shafqat Ali Khan. I feel that only Shafqat has the potential to perform live as he has a sound classical training background,” she adds.
When it comes to books, Naveed Shahzad is of the firm opinion that “just one life” is not enough to read and enjoy all the books that one adores. “If somebody is willing to offer me a meagre sum of amount to take care of my life from month to month, I would do nothing but to sit back, relax and read books. What a life that would be!”
There is an abundance of interesting books in the market and Naveed, in her own words, gets confused while deciding what book to bring back home with her. But, just as is the case with films and music, she loves to read any book that catches her attention at the time of browsing through the shelves and piles. “I get equal pleasure from the works of Maupassant, Tolstoy, Bano Qudsia, Intizar Hussain, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi and Faiz Ahmad Faiz,” says Naveed.
She feels that we must translate our regional literature into English and Urdu to make it accessible to more readers. She also has great regard for classical Urdu literature, and believes that without having a proper understanding of it, one cannot produce genuine literature.
KNOWN television personality and a career educationist in her own right, Naveed Shahzad abhors the very idea of naming one’s favourites in any field of art. Her tone goes quite unequivocal when she says that there is “no such thing as an all-time favourite”.
